


The Eyes Have It

by Morieris



Category: Ever After High
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-04-02
Updated: 2015-04-04
Packaged: 2018-03-20 23:21:49
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,581
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3668973
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Morieris/pseuds/Morieris
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Initially supposed to be a one shot....and it kind of is! It's just in two parts. Maybe 3.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

An F!

Apple White could hardly believe her eyes. This should have been an easy assignment -  _How to deter admirers politely when your One True Love is already determined._ Did she misunderstand the objective that badly?

She had kept her grade private from the other princesses and went to the professor after class.

“Ms. Her Majesty The White Queen?” Apple had asked, curtseying at the big desk the lady sat at.

“Hmm?” She was an unpredictable teacher, but for now, small black glasses were on her nose, and that nose was looking down at - “Apple White. What brings you here?”

Apple brought forth the offending assignment. “An F? I just want to know where I went wrong.”

Ms. Her Majesty The White Queen snatched the paper back and read it. “Ah, read those instructions again, Ms. White.” Apple took the paper back. “Take a good long read at it.”

_How to…_

oh  _…_

_How to encourage your admirers to fight a dragon for you and your One True Love to expand your kingdom._

“You see, Ms. White, unless the dragon happens to love you…it doesn’t work. that’s why you received, as you say, a fairy fail.” Was the smug response.

A light, embarrassed  blush touched Apple’s pale face. “I see. I can’t imagine how I got that so off the mark, but I assure you, It won’t happen again.”

The Queen nodded rapidly, and went back to her paperwork of drawing flamingos and groundhogs. “Now leave me be.” Apple curtseyed once again and took her work, determined to redo the assignment - not for an improved grade, but for her own understanding.

~~~

That evening, Apple, and Briar,\were sitting in the plush Royals common room. Apple was completing her failed assignment, Briar was flipping through MyChapter on her Mirrorpad. Others in the crowd talked quietly among themselves or read. There was a study group of witches crowded among small cauldrons that occasionally belched smoke.

Suddenly, Briar gasped. “Ohmigosh! Apple!” Her eyes were wide at the screen.

Apple jumped. “What’s up?” When Briar was quiet, still reading the screen, she prompted her again gently. “Briar?”

“This…look!” Briar had stopped on Blondie’s MyChapter page, where a tearful post was displayed;

 _I told_ someone  _a secret in the deepest confidence - and now - a fourth party knows! I only know this because #4 talked to me about it - the details are ours and ours alone. This is not right, this is_ beyond  _not right…oh curses, I have never been more embarrassed…i can only hope the party in question won’t find out -_ _The only reason I’m keeping my lips locked like an alligator trap about who did this heinous is because I’m waiting on an explanation - but loyal readers and friends, take whatever you may hear about yours truly with a pinch of salt instead of your usual sugar #betrayal #orBEARtrayl #TeamRoyals_

 _“_ Oh poor Blondie…” Apple immediately knew what the secret was, as Blondie had entrusted it to her and Briar only. She had quietly developed feelings for Cupid, but was hesitant to tell the exchange student. Not because she wouldn’t understand, but because the Raven/Dexter/Cupid triangle was something she did not want to be involved with, juicy a scandal it might be. “Briar, did you tell anyone?”

“No way; You don’t talk about a girl’s crush unless she gives you the ok. I even checked my hexts again to make sure I didn’t!” 

Apple quickly dug her Mirrorphone from her backpack and tapped in the passcode, flipping to the hexting application.

The message -  _You know, I think Blondie really should send Cupid a note, ask if she’d like to go out for tea or something? I’m sure Cupid would be happy to! -_ had strayed from it’s intended recipient of Briar, instead reaching … Melody Piper. 

The pair had been talking about their preferences in Fair Folk music; As such Melody’s thread was right beneath Briar’s. The timestamp read 10:24 AM, right before Throne Room Design class. In her rush, Apple had sent a message about a private affair to an outsider.

“Ugh!” Apple quickly explained the situation to Briar and buried her face into her hands. “I need to find Blondie and apologize, she must be so embarrassed. It’s my good fortune that Melody isn’t spiteful or cruel.”

“I mean, she did let it slip anyway -” Briar shrugged. “It was an accident, Blondie will understand.”

 _But she couldn’t. No one could._ Apple knew very well where the problems were coming from - her failing eyesight. She had glasses tucked neatly at the bottom of her trunk, ugly, unsightly things that clashed with her dresses and fascinators. Already a step away from truly being Snow White because of her blonde hair, the glasses would drag her thirty feet away. Before now, she had managed to get around….well enough.

But now her shortcomings were hurting her grades and the people she cared about - short of Ever After at large, those were the two things she would do everything to protect from harm.

And that would not do.


	2. Chapter 2

An overcast lay a shadow on Book End. It was near the end of April and was pleasantly cool. Apple’s birthday was arriving soon; As such she went about the town, overseeing things down to the last detail with Briar’s help. The invitations, her outfit...the treats. However, Briar had to make up a Damsels in Distressing practical, and there were quite a few bits Briar did not want her to know about.

“Who is the party planner here?” She had said while sipping at her hot chocolate. “Go see Ginger, I already told her what you like.”

She had been working with Ginger Breadhouse in her little shop all morning, watching as the Candy Witch measured and sang and whistled at certain ingredients and snarled at others. 

“It’s Candy Witch magic!” She had said, winking. 

Apple had been set upon measuring duty. Putting tiny, messy powders and sugars into tinier measuring cups had left her eyes tired and more than one recipe mismeasured - but it hadn’t stopped her from noticing Ginger’s big, round glasses. “How could you miss them?” Ginger had laughed when she pointed this out. “Here, take a look - “

They were pink and slightly oval shaped, with bright ornaments at the hinged connections. Little swirls lined the sides. Not like her dark, strict pair under - 

“Apple! I need those, it’s almost time for the fizzy frosting to be poked again!”

She handed them back quickly to the pastry chef, who returned them to her face and began stabbing at a bowl of frosting with two forks. “They’re really quite cute and whimsical, Ginger, they fit your personality very well!”

A singsongy reply of “Thaaaanks! I got them custom from Looking Glasses - you gotta make sure you ask for Miryen, she’s the best - ” With a little help from Apple, Ginger managed to calm the frosting into a stalemate.

“It’ll flare up again in a few minutes, but for now -”

“Ginger - oh, I’m sorry! Would you mind terribly if I stepped out for about an hour? I, er, just remembered a message I had to deliver in town.”

The witch waved a blue oven mitt at her. “No no, go on, you’re always so busy - the test treats we made are going to be awhile, i’ll hext you when they’re almost done - boop - “She put an apple magnet on an oven “ - I can get started on the snack rush!”

Thanking Ginger for her help so far, Apple quickly took her leave, darting back to her dormitory. She was hoping to find Blondie still; After apologizing through hext, Blondie had accepted the error rather distantly, and she wanted to do so in person.

 Now Apple was going down an older side of Book End, less popular with the younger crowd. Passing a Cobbleknockery, making a few wrong turns, she found the shop in question, marked by a sign with three eyes upon it.

Entering, a bell rang gently. She spotted two women arranging glasses on the wall. “Excuse me, I -” Apple stopped in shock.

They both had dirty black and brown hair that fell in a mess across their shoulders. The taller woman had three eyes in amber, and the other had a single brown eye right in the middle of her forehead. Ever After had all kinds of beings, but sometimes Apple had to remind herself that different was not wrong.

As frightening as they first appeared, their smiles were genuine.

 

“Yes! Y’highness?”

Apple cleared her throat. “I was looking for...a pair of glasses.” She finished in a small voice.

They both gaped in amazement, and suddenly began pulling pair after pair from the wall - “Ah, this this this, it’s perfect - “ “No, no, or this perhaps?”. All ugly designs.

“No, no! Not...I already have a pair.” Slowly, she opened her purse and removed her monogrammed glasses case, opening them with a snap, holding them in her pale hand.

Plain black rims. No personality. “Please, these - they’re just so - “ _Boring. Huge. Ill fitting for The Fairest_. “Just -” 

The bell rang again. The newcomer’s face was behind a large book. “Wonderful. Just fabulous.” Looking up, she seemed taken aback. “Am I here already? Ah well.” She closed her book, shook it, and a strap suddenly appeared from the spine. Slinging it over her shoulder, Rosabella Beauty walked near the crowd.

“Apple! How..different to see you here.” She nodded.“Yes, different. Ms. Celwyn, Ms. Kreiggan, you’re looking lovely. I’m just here to -”

“Spruce them up a bit, ‘m sure ‘m sure you are, ‘ighness.” Gently, the brown and red glasses were taken by Ms. Kreiggan, who sat down and set about tightening bits with a small screwdriver. 

Celwyn was still holding the armful of glasses when Apple said “Actually...I rather like Rosabella’s, from what I could see of them.”

“They’re custom made. Well, of course the  _prescription_  is custom, but the frame too.” Rosa squinted, and Apple lead her to a stool.

“Oh! Well perhaps there might be an option that I may buy a custom pair? I can pay right now, there’s no worry about that -”

Celwyn nodded, and tossed the pile onto a free table. “Check your eyes first.” She turned to the back room and shouted “MIRYEN!”

An almost identical woman came out - except she had two eyes of a deep, brownish red. Her hair was still the same dark mixture as the other two women, severely tangled at the ends. She curtseyed “Princess Apple White, nice meetin’ you - and Princess Rosabella, good seein’ you.”

Rosa turned in the direction of the voice and nodded. “Same. Almost.”

“Young ‘ighness Apple needs her vision checked, Mir.” Said Celwyn, who had begun to replace the glasses individually back upon the wall. “An’ a new pair, customlike.”

“Sure, sure...this way, please -” With a small wave towards Rosabella, Apple followed Miryen to the back. For the next hour, she peered through holes, pointed out letters and numbers, and her eyes were diluted and puffed into with little air cannons.

After sitting back in the front room with Rosabella, who was bespectacled once more and waiting for her. (”I wanted to hang around. This seems like an interesting story!”), Miryen  came out with a Mirrorpad, several fairies fluttering behind her holding a basket full of tools.

“M’word Apple...Y’borderin’ on somethin’ like 20/70 vision.”

Apple clasped her hands together. “Is that....bad?”

“Could be much more severe, but ‘tis nothin’ we can’t handle. I could even prepare the lenses t’day, but if you want custom frames, it’ll be three days, maybe more.”

“You could always wear your old glasses -” said Rosabella.

“No. No I can’t. I - I finally  come to terms that yes, I can’t see and just when I might not look like a .... well, then i’m still stuck wearing those things.”

“It’s only for a few days - what’s so wrong about wearing glasses anyhow?” When Apple didn’t reply, Rosabella continued. “It’s because you know you're the Quintessential Queen, the Top Tale...and you think glasses would bring you down.”

Apple felt her face burn. That was exactly it. She didn’t want to think that way, but she couldn’t help it. She buried her head in her hands once again under Rosabella’s pointed stare. “Basically. I don’t look down upon those who need help to see but...i’m not one of them. I’m not allowed to be.”

“Well...who bought ye’first pair of glasses? Those?” Miryen pointed to the plain black pair.

Apple sniffed. “My parents. I picked them out, though. I...thought it would make people take me seriously. You always see smart people with glasses like that.”

“But Apple - we’re smart without glasses like that!” Rosabella put her hand on her shoulder. “You, me, Lillith Suthorne, Ginger Breadhouse -”

“Oh gosh -” Apple reached for her Mirrorphone, where several hext messages blinked urgently.

Ginger’s message was almost an hour old - 

> _Apple? It’s been about two hours...is everything okay? Did you deliver your message? I rescued your tarts, but they’re def. cold now..._

Apple quickly replied:  _I’m fine! No need to call the guards...I just stopped. To get something I really needed. I’m sorry to have made you worry + take up your time! if you can, feel free to heat them and sell them so they don’t go to waste!_

When she had finished, she looked up to see Rosabella staring at her still. 

“It’s not glasses who make you who you are, Apple, it’s yourself, your actions, and what you present to the world. And you’re A+ in all those departments...but that doesn’t mean your glasses have to be ugly.” She flagged Celwyn down. “And we are not leaving today until we have some glasses you are absolutely  _thrilled_  with.”

~

Three days later, when Kreiggan had called Apple and told her her frames were ready, there was a large crowd situated around the shop’s entrance. Apple made her way through the throng with the Beauty cousins right behind her, Rosabella frowning at the loud crowd. “Ah - is it always like this for you, Apple?”

“Comes with the territory of being a high-tier Royal, Cuz!” Said Briar, waving at the photographers. 

All three sisters were waiting for them; Celwyn holding a monogrammed case of Apple’s initials. “Gonna see if they fit - should be good though.” She snapped it open, and all three girls gasped.

Slowly, Apple removed the frames. Cat’s eyes frames in a subdued gold with a gradient into pinkish-red at the ends. Putting them on, everything snapped into such clear focus she lost her breath. Her reflection in the mirror - 

No more were the old glasses a distracting focal point of her; The gold frames stood out beautifully without clashing. She looked poised and regal, no longer like a lost owl. Those glasses were fine for guys like Dexter, but they simply hadn’t been  _her_. 

And these were.

“See,” Miryen said after a moment of silence, “Now here is a Queen.”

“Ooooh!” Briar spun her friend around, laughing. “Girl! Look at you!” 

“Really nice.” Said Rosabella, nodding. “Like a fairytale ending.” She turned back to the crowd, angling to get in. “Now to make it back through that debacle.”

Never tired of her admiring fans, Apple sang out “Oh - it’s fine! Let everyone see the new me! Here,” She took both cousins by the hand and lead them out into the crowded sun. “Lunch at Greenhouse Piccadilly, on me.”


End file.
